Six New Fellows to Join IOP

Six new resident fellows—including Fox News contributor and former Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz, chief correspondent at The Washington Post Dan Balz, and former Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell—are coming to Harvard this fall at the Institute of Politics.

This fall’s fellows class also includes Yohannes Abraham, senior advisor at the Obama Foundation and former senior advisor to the National Economic Council, Karen Finney, former senior spokesperson for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, and Mark Strand, president of the Congressional Institute.

The fellows program strives to “encourage student interest in public life and to increase interaction between the academic and political communities.”

Fellows will lead weekly study groups in their respective areas of expertise, among other engagements with students throughout the academic semester.

Fall study group topics will include privacy expectations in the digital era, the role of the media, legislative reform, and strategies for environmentally sustainable economic growth. Students will also get a behind-the-scenes look at White House policy work.

From Jewell’s experiences as a public servant and a business executive—formerly serving as CEO of outdoor equipment store REI—to Balz’s perspective as a seasoned political journalist who has covered every presidential campaign and midterm election since 1978, the roster has a diversity in professional backgrounds.

Additionally, this fall’s class will offer perspectives from both sides of the aisle, with Obama administration veterans as well as a former Republican Congressman.

“This exceptional group of leaders and practitioners will offer our students diverse and multi-layered insights into a range of issues through their up-to-the-moment experience and demonstrated commitment to public service and civic engagement,” interim director of Institute of Politics William D. Delahunt said in the press release.

Emily M. Hall ’18 and Jason Ge ’18, student chairs of the IOP’s Fellows and Study Groups program, said they are “thrilled” to have these six fellows “continue the impact past Fellows have made on our lives by connecting with future students.”

—Staff writer Sarah Wu can be reached at sarah.wu@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @sarah_wu_.